The Little Mermaid IV Through The Tides Of Space
by The-Confused-Blue-Dragon
Summary: A few years after the events of the second film leaves Melody, Ariel & Eric living a new life as both sea & shore are united. But when an alien race, known as the Kavo, arrive from the other side of the galaxy for a new home, this brews up a recipe for an entirely new adventure that Melody, Ariel, their friends & family will never forget.


_**The Little Mermaid IV: Through The Tides Of Space**_

_**Written by: The-Confused-Blue-Dragon**_

_Chapter I: Prologue,_

The ocean is a beautiful & wonderous place. It covers more than eighty percent of the entire planet's surface, the waters stretching out endlessly beyond the horizon, & going down for many miles in some areas or merely a few feet in others… & yet mankind knows practically _nothing _about it. In its waters live countless varieties of marine life of all classes & breeds; some live in the beautiful coral reefs near the white, sandy beaches. Others live out in the wide open ocean, where there's nothing but beautiful blue water for miles around. Others live in the darkest abysses near the very bottom; hideous creatures spending their entire lives in pitch-black darkness, some never even seeing the faintest speck of light.

Overall, the ocean is another world entirely.

For centuries, the bottom of the deepest seas have been shrouded in mystery & superstition, especially during this era: the early Victorian Era, when great schooners sailed by the winds & no man has ever gone more than a few feet beneath the waves & lived to tell the tale.

And for just as long, man has argued amongst himself & told tales of what could possibly exist down in the unexplored depths of these mysterious waters. Some stories tell of mighty beasts lurking in the darkness of the abyss; great sea monsters growing hundreds or even thousands of feet long, large & powerful enough to create waves reaching hundreds of feet high with a mere stroke of their massive tails or tentacles, waiting for an unexpecting ship to fall into their clutches... while others tell of treasures & long lost cities; great relics & legends of time, & riches beyond anyone's wildest imagination, of lands & kingdoms that have long been lost beneath the sea.

But the best known stories are those of the merpeople; people with the tails of fish that live down in the depths of the seas, far out of the reach of human nets, harpoons & fishhooks.

Tales of the merpeople vary; some claim that mermaids - the women of the species - are murderous sirens, using their hypnotic voices to lure ships to their doom on the rocks & consume the flesh of drowned or drowning sailors. More common stories claim that they, like themselves, are merely people of the sea, who live in a great underwater kingdom, ruled by the powerful yet wise King Triton; the great sea-lord of the seas. Others more or less doubt merpeople's existence entirely; saying they're no more than the half-crazed fantasies of sailors who have been out at sea for far too long.

However, as one royal family living at the edge of the sea learned, fantasy can be very real.

The kingdom of the merpeople does indeed exist... This kingdom is called Atlantica.

Standing tall & proud within the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, the great kingdom of Atlantica was something that appeared to have come straight from a fairytale...but it was otherwise very real. The mighty palace of King Triton stood tall above all the others, while the other buildings decorating the sea floor surrounding the palace were no less majestic nor beautiful; the city itself was carved from the rock & coral of the sea floor, while the palace was built from what appeared to be pure gold, but stood stronger than even the toughest steel. The entire palace & city alike glimmered with an heavenly, golden aura, it's beauty & awe found nowhere in the world above the waves.

It was truly a place of peace & harmony, far from the world of man.

But that didn't mean Atlantica _never _had contact with humans or the world above.

For years now, Atlantica & a kingdom on the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean, the Kingdom of Coastalis, have been in contact & have known of each other's presence. Why? Thanks to the greatest unity that can ever occur between two kingdoms: marriage between members of the royal families, this case the marriage of Prince Eric of Coastalis & Princess Ariel of Atlantica.

Ariel was the youngest of the seven daughters of King Triton & Queen Athena, the other six named Attina, Aquata, Andrina, Adella, Alana, & Arista. But unlike her sisters, who inherited their father's caution & distrust of new things, Ariel had inherited her mother's adventurous & open-hearted nature; that, coupled with the stubborness she inherited from her father, had led to her being an adventurous & daring young teenager with a heart large enough for the entire sea... but she gave her heart to the land & world of man, which she had always found fascinating & longed to be a part of, much to her father's anger and irritation.

Her journey to her life on the land began when, noticing a shadow passing overhead, swam to the surface to see the royal schooner of Prince Eric himself, which was celebrating in honour of the prince's eighteenth's birthday. Many would say it was foolish of Ariel to jump for the prince the moment she saw him...but the little mermaid _knew _the moment she saw him she had found her one true love, human or not. However, a sudden great hurricane unleashed it's full power upon the ship, destroying it & knocking Eric unconscious, his limp body thrown into the waters. So, disobeying her father's law & desperate to save the man she loved, Ariel rescued the prince from drowning, pulling him to shore...where she sang to the world that she loved him & longed to be part of his world. She then disappeared into the ocean once more, but not before Eric awoke, catching a brief glimpse of her face & hearing a portion of her heavenly voice, vowing to find who it belonged to.

Sebastian, King Triton's right-hand crustacean advisor, witnessed Ariel rescuing the young prince & tried to convince her that life under the sea was better than what the land had to offer, for her sake & his own. But Ariel wouldn't be persuaded otherwise; she longed for her true love, & that longing was only made stronger when her longtime friend Flounder presented her with a statue of Prince Eric that had sunk when the rest of his ship did at her secret grotto where she kept all of her human treasures she had found over the years. However, a slip of the tongue from Sebastian, & a furious King Triton discovered her grotto, angrily confronting her about her saving the life of a 'Spineless, Savage, Harpooning, Fish Eater' that he believed all humans to be. Upon discovering his daughter's love for the prince, he drew the line, destroying Ariel's entire collection with the power of his trident, Eric's statue included; Ariel broke down & wept, & King Triton left her alone in her now-empty grotto, ashamed of his blind actions.

However, their argument hadn't gone unheard, for Ariel was soon visited by Flotsam & Jetsam, twin messenger eels of Triton's treacherous sister: the sea witch Ursula. The two lead Ariel to Ursula's lair, where the octopin offers to turn Ariel into a human for three days, in exchange for her voice: if she could earn his true love & kiss, the spell would be permanent & Ariel would remain a human forever...but if she failed, then Ariel would turn back to her original mermaid form & be hers forever…

…As a lowly polyp.

Willing to do what it took to find her love, Ariel agreed. She was then turned human & carried safely to shore by Flounder & Sebastian, who agreed (The latter more reluctantly) to help her find her prince.

The first two days went well: she was found by Eric himself, who gave her a home in his palace with him, where she met French chef Louis, kindly housemaid Carlotta, & elderly Grimsby; Prince Eric's servant & tutor since his days as a young boy.

However, without her voice, Eric did not recognize her as the same girl who saved his life that day. That didn't stop Ariel from winning most of his affection, though; on the second day, Eric and Ariel went on a boat ride through the swamp &, with Sebastian's help, soon found themselves ready to accept their love.

They would've succeeded then & there, but failed thanks to the intervention of Flotsam and Jetsam; Realizing that had been too close a call, Ursula took matters into her own hands, transforming herself into a brunette-haired resemblance of Ariel herself, placing Eric under a spell & having him marry _her _instead. Her plot was foiled by seagull Scuttle, though, who saw through her disguise via her mirror aboard the ship & prevented the wedding from taking place. During the commotion of the wedding crashing, the seashell amulet containing Ariel's voice shattered, breaking the spell over Eric & restoring the magical voice back to it's original owner, whom Eric finally recognized.

But it was too late; it was the third day, & the sun set before they could kiss.

The spell on Ariel broke, transforming her into a mermaid before Eric's eyes; triumphant, Ursula returned to her own true form, kidnapping Ariel & disappearing beneath the waves. With Sebastian's help, King Triton was able to get to Ursula in time, but he could not break the deal Ariel had made with the Sea Witch three days previous, even with the power of the trident. Not wanting to see his youngest child turned into a polyp, Triton agreed to take her place: Triton was transformed into a polyp, while Ursula gained the crown & possession of the trident, enabling her to rule the entire sea... as was her original plan all along. In the ensuing battle that followed, where Eric saved Ariel from the sea witch, Flotsam & Jetsam were evaporated accidentally by the Sea Witch herself, thanks to a misdirected bolt from the trident due to Ariel's intervention. Furious, Ursula turned herself into a giant tried to eradicate Ariel, her madness creating a great storm & rising sunken ships from the sea floor. Eric, not willing to lose Ariel again, seized the helm of one of the ships & rammed it's broken stern mast through her blackened heart, destroying her for good. The Sea Witch defeated, all the polyps under her curse transformed back to their original merman/mermaid selves, including King Triton, who regained his crown & trident.

Seeing that Ariel truly loved Eric, as well as owing a debt of eternal gratitude to the human who brought down his evil sister whether he couldn't do so for good, Triton accepted what was to come & used the trident's power to turn Ariel into a human, this time permanently, despite the fact he was going to miss her. Ariel & Eric where then wed at sea, where Ariel made amends with her father.

Normally, that's when they would say they lived Happily Ever After...but the story was far from over. Their legacy of their adventures in the sea was now bestowed & carried upon by their daughter: Melody.

The beams of the morning sunlight that pierced through the ocean's surface shown down upon the kingdom beneath the sea, the water's turning them a soft blue, giving the depths an even more mystical appearance. It was the perfect time of year for the kingdom of Atlantica to be hosting a grand celebration. All throughout Triton's palace the royal mer-staff were completely transforming the interior of the throne room; one of the many rooms being redecorated for the up-coming celebration: Melody's 'late and redone' birthday party.

It had been a full four or five years since Morgana was defeated & the wall separating the land from the sea was taken down for good; trips to Atlantica had become a regular thing for Melody & her family. Since the sea witch's demise, Undertow, Cloak & Dagger had been spending their days locked away with the sea's most vile & dangerous criminals, Tip & Dash had been welcomed by Atlantica & made honorary members due to their bravery during the crisis, & Eric, Ariel, & Melody have enjoyed their life on land & in the sea even more so now that Morgana was no longer a grave concern, not having to worry about setting foot in the water & fearing danger from Ursula's vengeful sibling.

Just a few days ago, Ariel and Eric had made plans with their father/father-in-law (in private!) to celebrate Melody's birthday in Atlantica, also to give Ariel and her aquatic relative a greatly-overdue reunion; it would be a surprise party, held after the first party at Eric Palace, when Melody wasn't suspecting a thing. Triton was thrilled with the idea, but matters in the ocean had to be tended to first: with the sea-witches gone for good, Atlantica and the rest of the ocean's kingdoms finally had the chance to begin their lives once more.

It took what felt like forever, but now they were ready to unite the land & sea once more.

"How are the preparations coming along, Sebastian?" Triton asked from upon his throne, Trident in hand as he oversaw the transformation to the main throne room.

Sebastian went over his list, which dangled down longer than Triton's own tail. "All is in order, your majesty: De decorations All we're missin' now is da birthday girl herself."

Triton, Sebastian, & Flounder were all really excited. They knew Melody was going to be really surprised & it would be nice to see her & Ariel again. Flounder saw them from time to time, either by floating up to the surface or them coming down to visit him for a weekend or two, & Sebastian now usually spent the majority of his time with Ariel & her family up on the land with them.

Triton knew how they felt; it made him almost consider of turning Flounder or Sebastian into a human as well.

"Oh, fiddle-fuddle." Sebastian remarked as he rolled his list up into a scroll. "I'm proud to be who I am; be t'ankful for it, don't'cha know? We all should feel dat way."

Flounder & Triton just gave him a straight look that they disagreed. The crab huffed in indignation, throwing his list away & swimming off out of the palace, most likely to check on things outside. No sooner had he left did preparations continue, though Triton's mind was elsewhere; he reached down to the side of his throne & lifted up a stack of large, flat calm shells; on each shell was a different picture of his family & treasured moments: his deceased wife, Athena, whom he missed deeply, his other daughters, friends & family of old, & so forth...but his favourite of all was, by far, the one of Ariel, Eric, & his sweet little Melody.

He still could hardly believe how much time had gone by & things had changed, but he was going to enjoy seeing his granddaughter again.

Triton: _The years have passed_

_& times have changed_

_Like the Ocean's tide & waves_

Flounder: _There have been good times_

_& the bad_

_We've had our smiles & raves_

_We have hellos_

_& then goodbyes_

_For when we come & go_

Sebastian: _But now we must get planning for_

_A special day we know..._

Everyone:_ A party!_

_A party!_

_We're going to have a party!_

_We're going do the best you will see._

_We'll do the best we can_

_Every mermaid, every merman_

_For the birthday of Princess Melody..._

_Polish the silver & the gold_

_Clean up the messes as you're told_

_The princess, she'll be here soon._

_By rise of the sun & moon._

_A party! A party!_

_We're going to have a party!_

_We're going do the best you will see._

_We'll do the best we can_

_Every mermaid, every merman_

_For the birthday of Princess Melody_

Meanwhile, the Kingdom of the Coast was preparing a celebration party for their little princess as well. The castle was all decorated, & a grand-ball was going to be held that night; the kingdom itself was going on just as it usually does, while inside the palace everything was all rush, rush, rush to get everything ready & perfect for the celebration of the day Ariel & Eric's precious Melody had been brought into the world. Servants & maids were rushing about with the preparations. A few on ladders were setting up the decorations, the tables were being set up & ballroom scrubbed from ceiling to floor, while Chef Louis & the royal cooks were preparing all the delicious birthday foods & snacks with 'manifique elegance', including a huge birthday cake with thirteen candles, while Carlotta & the other maids were busy making the suits & dresses for the special occasion shine & look perfect on anyone.

And in the middle of it all was Ariel & Eric themselves, overseeing the decorations on their layer of the world. Both of their causal day-wear seemed to be drowned out by the beautiful appearance of the ballroom around them.

Ariel: _It seems as only yesterday_

_She was my little tiny baby_

_And now she's grown & learning well_

_She really takes after me_

Eric: _Although today is like no other_

_That any one of us has seen_

Both: _Our daughter has grown some more_

_For today she turns sixteen._

Everyone:_ A party!_

_A party!_

_We're going to have a party!_

_We're going do the best you will see._

_We'll do the best we can_

_Every man & woman_

_For the birthday of Princess Melody._

It was a place anyone couldn't be happier to be alive in, including the pride of both the royal parents' hearts: Princess Melody, who was just waking up from a blissful sleep in her bedroom in the palace. She was in her bedroom, lying in her large bed under her purple blankets & dressed in her baby-pink nightgown; the entire room was dark due to the window curtains blocking the outside light from coming through her balcony window, but she could tell it was morning outside.

In other words, the teenage princess had absolutely no intention of getting up.

That's when she heard the door open, & in walked in the Palace's head-housemaid Carlotta, carrying with her a fresh set of sheets for the bed.

"Rise & shine, your highness!" Carlotta said merrily as she strolled in, setting the sheets on one of the chairs before opening the window; the room was suddenly filled with the bright light of the rising morning sun. "It's a beautiful day outside!"

Melody moaned as she turned away from the window, grabbing one of her pillows & bringing it down over her head.

"Mmmmmhh... Five more minutes..." She murmured into the mattress.

Carlotta merely shook her head an amused smile; this was an occasional routine the palace went through often. "Come on now, Melody. You don't want me to bring Max in here again, do you?" She asked, her voice full to teasing humour.

That did the trick; last time Melody tried to sleep in, her parents got her up by bringing in Max to greet her in the morning… & by greeting they mean the big, slobbery hairball jumping up on top of Melody & giving her equally big, slobbery licks. Her parents found it very hilarious, as did she after a few hours, but it was an experience she never wanted to repeat. Don't get her wrong, she loved Max, as she did everyone she considered family... but she hated those slobbery wet licks he was so fond of giving people.

"Okay, okay..." She groaned, sitting up in bed & stretching out the knicks & stiffness in her arms & body, yawning as she did so as she felt & heard the occasional clicking of her joints. "...what time is it, Carlotta?" She asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Time for you to get ready and head downstairs; you don't want to be late for your own birthday party, do you?" Carlotta told her as Melody got up, the young princess pushing away the covers & slipping her feet into matching slippers before standing up.

Although Melody was still the rebellious & adventurous little girl at heart, she had grown from a young girl just reaching her twelfth birthday into a beautiful young woman; if it weren't for her hair colour & slightly smaller height than she & her mother would be nearly impossible to tell apart. Despite this, Melody was already behaving (slightly) more better; just how nearly everybody else wanted her to behave, although her cheekiness & spirited personality hasn't gone far; much to her parents' disapproval when that happens.

"Now then, what would you like to wear today?" Carlotta asked.

Melody smiled appreciatively. "Carlotta, you know you don't have to help me pick my own clothes." She assured the maid with a slight giggle. "I can do it on my own, & ever since I turned sixteen."

Carlotta smiled herself. "I know, I know..." She said before sighing happily. "It seems like only yesterday you were that little princess that I used to help pick out clothes for, tie her shoes, & make her bed before she would run downstairs to breakfast."

Melody couldn't help but blush. "Carlotta, you're embarrassing me..." She whined.

"Oh, _I'm _embarrassing _you_." Carlotta joked with a sly grin, tossing the girl her clothes for the day, surprising the girl before she quickly caught them. "If only you knew just how much trouble your parents, Grimsby, & I have been through trying to keep that daring, mischievous, getting-into-trouble girl I knew under control! The only thing that's changed now is that your old enough to get yourself into more kinds of it! Oh, heaven forbid what will happen the day when you start dating suitors!"

Melody's smile quickly turned to a frown, blowing a few strands of fallen hair up out of her face. "Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence…" She said in annoyance.

"Now get yourself cleaned up, young lady." Carlotta then said, dumping all the dirty sheets in her basket. "You're parents are expecting you downstairs."

Melody smiled as she turned her gaze to the window, watching the beautiful blue waters wash ashore in the form of waves; it felt wonderful to be able to look out her window and see the ocean expanding beyond the horizon… instead of waking up to a large boring wall casting a forbidding shadow over her castle home, blocking her from the sea that she loved.

Those days were now finally over, & for good.

As Carlotta stripped the bed & remade the sheets, Melody walked behind the cover & slipped herself into her usual three-green dress, which was a green duplicate of her mother's three blue dress: the midsection being the darkest green, the sleeves being the lightest, with the skirt part being in between. She then wrapped her long back hair into it's usual ponytail before making her way to her dresser, sitting down in front of the mirror.

Yet if Melody had inherited Ariel's bright red hair instead of her fathers', she would be easily mistaken for her mother, or even be seen as a 'missing identical twin'!

Pulling open the top right drawer, she reach in & brought out her most prized possession: A golden seashell locket with her name carved into the front.

A thoughtful smile formed on her face as she just sat there, holding the seashell necklace in one hand while running her fingers across the smooth surface… & recalling the great adventure she had gone through to learn the truth about this necklace… & about herself. Only a good few years had passed since that crazy trip to Atlantica & back, & already Melody was enjoying this new & better life.

Melody: _This is my world now, everyone_

_One world, the Land & Sea_

_But no matter where I roam, or which I call home_

_Both will always be a part of me..._

Everyone:_ A party!_

_A party!_

_We're going to have a party!_

_We're going do the best you will see._

_We'll do the best we can_

_Every man and woman_

_For the birthday of Princess Melody._

Chef Louis:_ Bake zee cake, & bake zee pie_

_Make it so they stand up high_

Grimsby: _Present yourselves, & look up straight_

Carlotta: _So much to do & de-cor-ate...!_

Everyone:

_A party!_

_A party!_

_We're going to have a party!_

_We're going do the best you will see._

_We'll do the best we can_

_Every mermaid, every merman_

_For the birthday of Princess Melody._

_For the birthday of Princess Mel-oooo-deeeeeeee!_

The song ended & the entire palace burst into cheer; Melody giggled at the sight of the finished musical number before turning away from the window.

Returning to her desk, she slipped her necklace around her neck &, finishing up the last touches with a quick brush of her hair & straightening out of her dress, headed downstairs. Upon reaching the top of the stairs, she was greeted by the sight of her parents waiting for her at the bottom.

"Hi, Mom! Hi Dad!" Melody called back before she sat herself down on the railing of the stairs; she slid down with an excited squeal & literally flew into her father's arms. Eric and Ariel laughed as the former caught his young daughter in his arms, spinning around once before the two parents giving their daughter a loving hug.

"Melody, I think you may be getting a tad too big for this." Eric said with a laugh, setting his daughter down on her feet.

"Sorry, Dad." Melody said with a slight giggle. She then stifled a yawn, rubbing the last bits of sleep from her eyes. "Now would someone tell me why I had to get up so early?"

"_Early_?" Her father asked with a cocked eyebrow. "Melody, it's almost noon. Not exactly what I'd call early."

"Huh?" The raven-haired teen asked in confusion, turning her gaze to the grandfather clock standing near the far wall; sure enough, it was well past eleven, almost twelve. "How-?"

Ariel sighed with an amused huff. "You were up late last night 'adventuring' with Tip and Dash again." She asked. "You didn't come back until _way_ past sundown, remember?"

Melody blushed sheepishly after an awkward pause. "Oh… yeah… my bad…" She muttered.

The former mermaid smiled. "Well, never mind that. The party starts at six, & your father & I are going into town with Carlotta & Louis to get a few last things for the refreshments; do you want to come with us, or can you keep yourself out of the way of the servant staff until the guests arrive?"

Melody sighed, not looking at all excited or anxious as most kids should be about their birthdays; for the young princess, birthdays had never ended well on her part. Thanks to her sheltered, hidden life, she had grown to be shy & awkward around other kids her age… & these big birthdays her parents hosted for her were amongst the worst situations a socially-awkward teenager could be in; out in the middle of attention, surrounded by the higher, judging royal class, all of them watching & just waiting for an accident to bring forth complete & utter humiliation...which, thanks to her awkward nature, or to the accident-prone sea life she hung out with, was a common occurrence. Already, many of the kids of the neighbouring royal or noble families thought her as 'weird'; a particular word she had come to loathe with a passion.

"I...I can keep myself occupied until then." She finally stated. "I'll just stay out in the bay until the party."

Ariel nodded. "Alright, but you know the rules. They are..." She trailed off expectantly.

Melody groaned; how many times had she repeated them out loud again? "One: Only use my necklace when no one's around. Two: Keep my tail _below_ water & _out of sight_ at all times. Three: Do not wander too far from shore. And Four: Do not, repeat, _do not_ go beyond the Drop Off." She droned in a flat tone. "There. Can I go _now_?" She then whined with impatience.

Eric laughed fondly at his daughter. "Alright, alright; just keep the rules in mind." He said, ruffling her hair. "And remember: be back by six. Okay?"

"Don't worry dad, you know I will!" She told them, giving her parents one last hug before running off to breakfast. "See ya!"

Eric chuckled as he and Ariel watched her go. "Stay out of trouble. Be back by six..." He muttered to himself and Ariel in a joking manner as they prepared to leave. "I might as well tell the sun to stop shining or the sea to dry up."

Ariel smiled. "That is true, but I'm glad she now has the freedom to do so." She told her husband as she walked beside him arm in arm. "Morgana is finally gone, and their nothing now to prevent her from returning to the sea...and I'm glad she finally can."

Eric nodded with his own smile as the two then headed off together.

* * *

_Deep in Space, beyond the Moon…_

Yet despite the continued preparations for Melody's big birthday party, something very, very big was approaching the small but rich blue planet, currently slowing down after many decades in the endless reaches of space.

Not the usually cheesy saucer-shaped spaceship of folklore, but something much bigger: an interstellar Super-Starship.

The huge vessel could easily be mistaken for a mid-21st Century spacecraft, but up closer the differences could easily be seen: the ship itself was eighteen kilometres long & five kilometres at the widest. The stern or rear end, was made up of four massive wings - built to an X-shape configuration - held as many as fifty engines on each wing. Every single engine, whose uniquely shaped appearance is similar to the US F-22 Raptor, was glowing a deep crimson red; a few shades darker than Ariel's red hair after several weeks worth of being alight at full blast, just to slow the mighty vessel...

...From a tad over a million miles... _per second!_ And for a little over _a hundred years_ no less!

Behind the enormous bank of engines was a massive network of super-reinforced scaffolding structures; similar to the French Eiffel Tower, they connected no less than eight huge cuboid capsules together - all being three times larger than the 21st Century Nimitz class Aircraft Carriers - in the same manner as a train. The eight capsule hulls were arranged in two sets of four; the forward pair being arranged parallel like a divided cube split into four sections; similar to the rear set yet each of the hulls was interconnected to each other by a large number of thick cylinder tubes, mainly used to navigate passengers, personnel & cargo between each of the eight hulls.

Every flat surface seen upon the entire the ship were covered in a countless number of solar panels to absorb light energy to use as electricity for daily electronics & furthermore. Further down the starship train, a good number of twenty or so spacecraft called SC-66-Type.B Goliath T.A.V's were mostly parked in tight unison inside hangar bays while additional ships remained connected to docking arms outside; these were colossal & very powerful space shuttle/transports designed to carry huge/oversized cargo & personnel over equally huge distances, from point A to B & vice versa.

The SC-66-Type.B Goliaths possessed an unusual hybrid resemblance to the US C-17 Globemaster, with both size & wing layout of the Soviet Antonov AN-225. Instead of a smooth curved organic look of both transport aircraft, these ships had completely flat clean surfaces with angled leading edges, same as the flat angled hulls of a 21st Century stealth aircraft or ship. These titans not only lived up to their name in great size, but were among the fastest atmospheric space vessels thanks to their sleek appearance.

Their powerful engines gave the Goliaths the capability of both reaching high supersonic speeds & performing VTOL capabilities, rendering them the unopposed No.1 heavy-lift re-usable shuttle for trans-atmospheric purposes. Unlike the C-17, the SC-66 Goliaths carry two huge Scram-Jet/Fusion engines embedded within the tail for hypersonic flight, & a further twelve turbojet engines mounted in six sets of twin-jet nacelles; the first pair was found forward of the main wings on the forward hull, another pair mounted midway along the main wings, having the further wing surface fixed in place on the nacelles. The last pair are located on the aft twin tail; each twin jet nacelle mounted on the base of either rear wing that, like the outer main wings, were fixed in place to further reduce maintenance and cost. All these turbojet engines together were powerful enough to lift the Goliaths directly upwards with maximum cargo aboard, & be able of swiveling either independently or in complete unison to each other, owing to much of their unusual agility despite their great size.

Then finally, a massive circular saucer-shaped dome, five kilometres wide & just about finished the job of being the very protective shield of the entire ship. The side facing toward the ship was mirrored & entirely scratchless; showing a stunning flawless reflection of Earth. Whereas the other side was vice versa; deep craters & gouges now inhibit the ship's dull grey Dome Shield, without this shield, the ship would've been destroyed many times over on its journey to get here.

The humungous dreadnought belonged to a class of twenty or so Valkyries' Claim class Capital Ships; previously completed as titanic Space Battleships up until their decommissioning, & were all rebuilt for civilian usage. This particular ship - the Great Lucia The Ninth - is the first ever ship to arrive to Earth, just about seeing the blue planet in full detail when the ship entered the Moon's orbit.

The great ship then manoeuvres to broadside of Earth, displaying its great size as it launches multiple projectiles from various points on the ship. Some of the missiles struck the Moon to pick up information about its features, while some remained in permanent flight as they deployed huge wing-like solar panels from their sides, ready to scan, retrieve & send critical data back to their mothership.

Just as the satellites begun their probing operations above the Earth's atmosphere, the vessels' crew & passengers - currently locked in suspended animation - were beginning to stir from their multi-decade slumber. Truth be told it didn't feel like a hundred or so years, but more like a temporary dose of sleeping pills. But to one member of the ships' complement of nearly fifty-thousand, it felt like a shot of medical anaesthetics & a recent butt-kicking.

This one went by the name of Pigeon, a young female of the arriving alien species called the Kavo; repto-mammalian humanoids with long whip-like reptilian tails & very colourful feather-like quills adorning their heads in place of hair. In addition, two sets of six or eight larger & longer quills ran parallel over the head; they were much larger & can freely stand up as a static display or to rattle around & flash their bright colours. They also have deep cat-like corneas, bold green coloured skin with slightly darker pine-green stripes adorning their faces, bodies, limbs & tails while their undersides remained a pale green. Their hands & feet held an additional sixth digit found close to the wrist, which appeared more like the wicked curved sickle-claw of a Velociraptor than a human finger.

Pigeon, like her adopted elder brother Raikes, were born on their homeworld of Teriaga; an Earth-like planet orbiting a gas giant the size of Neptune or Uranus, in fact they were one of the last few Kavo born on their homeworld before a rogue mega-asteroid the size of Earth's moon, completely annihilated the planet. Pigeon was younger than her brother, only a teenager between sixteen or eighteen. She was an inch or so taller than Melody & has a more adult feminine build, her bright sapphire-blue eyes encircled diamond-shaped pupils, her head was thick with beautiful feathers that held every colour in the rainbow; some feathers even reaching past her shoulders by five inches. Pigeon also possesses an uncanny ability to properly fly spacecraft of extra-large sizes, & this has made her one of the ships' shuttle crews. Her favoured spacecraft are the SC-66-Type.B Goliath T.A.V's that, ever since she began having dreams of flying the giants, she has never given up time after time. Yet ever since she graduated flight school, Pigeon had finally got her wish; the very pilots' seat of a Goliath Super-Heavy Transport.

It wasn't long before she, along with other crewmen & women that pilot the Goliath Transport Shuttles, were given the nickname 'Angels' due to the white colour & sleek bold lines the shuttles displayed.

Raikes on the other hand was half a head taller than Pigeon & being a member of the male gender, he carries a bigger build albeit being just as streamlined. His tail was longer than hers & his quills were shorter in length but much more bolder in colour, giving him a fascinating display to his audiences. Despite both Pigeon & Raikes being brother & sister, they are completely unrelated yet knowing this fact doesn't mean they can't be together in marriage, so in contrast they were brother & sister yet future mates as they love each other either way. Raikes, like Pigeon, has had a great interest in flight, but unlike his sister his aim was one thing; ultra-high speed, & that led him to becoming a full-fledged fighter pilot. Now he pilots the state-of-the-art ASF-23-Class.2 Avenger fighters like a few others in his squadron.

Both siblings, like everybody else on the ship, were wearing white thick skin-tight clothing that only exposed their lower tails, hands, feet, heads & necks. Like everybody else in suspended animation, they were strapped down to avoid them floating around in their compartments; that only had enough room to house one Kavo at a time.

Pigeon's eyes slowly fluttered open, her eyes very blurry & straining to see whatever is in front of her; a panel full of flashing lights & monitoring systems of her compartment. Her sight finally adapts to the dark blue lighting, & sees the mask over her nose & mouth, giving her fresh oxygen & nitrogen from a number of interconnecting tubes.

Her mouth was also feeling almost as dry as the Sahara Desert; not very surprising after being asleep for nearly a hundred years or so. Looking down her body, she sees several loose bondages; one over her body, another over her upper legs & the last holding her ankles, all to prevent her - plus every other passenger & crewmen & women aboard this ship - from floating about & wedging themselves in a corner.

Pigeon looks around her small compartment to see a small rectangular window/porthole several inches above her head. Although already she sees a good amount of shadowy movement outside.

"(_Have we arrived already? Have we been hit by an asteroid? Or have we just stopped at a pit-stop for a stretch?_)" Pigeon thought, scraping her tongue inside her mouth to moisturize.

Then, a sudden glow of white light from the lid of her compartment stung her eyes, making her wince slightly before they refocused to the light. As well as that, she saw the face of the starships' medical crew awaiting her overhead, & beyond a middle-aged female nurse approaching her were the floating bodies of other passengers alongside her of all shapes, ages & sizes.

"We there yet? Or are we taking another of those recent pit-stops like last time?" She grumbled flatly.

The medical nurse chuckled with a smile, "Now don't you worry there, we've arrived at our new destination at last."

"Oh, _finally!_" She cursed as she rolled her eyes in sarcasm, "Well it's about time 'cause I think I can feel my bladder about to pop!"

The nurse gave a small chuckle before replying, "Well, I admit, that's what being asleep for a hundred years does to ya; makes you wait until you are super desperate for the toilet!"

Pigeon's eyes bulged out in realization, making her pause for a second or so. "Wait, what? A _hundred years_?" She almost choked, then her ears retracted back to the sides of her head as she looked to the nurse, "Tell me you're kidding me..."

"Nope, a full century flown by during our travels!" She beamed, then started scratching her chin in thought, "And that's a lot of birthdays to catch up on I admit…"

"Yeesh, now I _know_ how a tortoise on it's hundredth birthday feels like…" She muttered to herself as the nurse went about her job of monitoring the girls' health levels.

* * *

A group of Giant Tortoises were circled around another of their own kind, cheering as they sang the birthday song to their friend. Their encircled friend's birthday cake also had the words 'Happy One-Hundredth Birthday George!' written into the icing.

"_Happy Birthday to you,_

_Happy Birthday to you,_

_Happy Birthday to George,_

_"Happy Birthday to yoouu!_"

* * *

"Yeah, you're telling me!" The nurse replied in exaggeration before turning her attention to Pigeon's monitor, & giving a soft smile & slight nod of satisfaction upon reading the monitors' health readings, "Well, your vitals are normal, so you're good to go."

"About time too!" She says in a nonchalant tone, leaving the medical assistant chuckling lightly as she shook her head slightly. "I oughta find my brother before he finds himself in big trouble!"

After Pigeon had been freed from her safety bondings, she immediately grips a hold on the handlebar to her right to keep herself from drifting away. As she makes her way past the crowds of people to her designated locker, the ship's speakers ring aloud.

"**Attention, attention! May I have your attention please; we have arrived at our newest destination; the third planet from a Gold Star with one single dead moon, classed as a H-Class planet by our counters. For further information await the deflector screens to lower for you to see the planet below. Thank you.**"

"You've been in cryo for one-hundred years, four months & ten days! You may be weak, you might be hungry, if you feel nausea please use the sacks required! We do not want to clean up after your mess!" Another medical assistant calls aloud among the chattering of the ship's compliment.

Pigeon gave a slight nod of acceptance to the announcement, & proceeded to her locker not far above. She grabs hold of the handlebars above & swings herself around to face her locker, but sees someone all too well the next locker along.

She gives a mischievous look towards her adopted brother with a grin, "Well, well, well if it isn't Mr-Wannabe-Top-Gun!"

"Excuse me; _Wannabe_-Top-Gun? That should be corrected as _Mister_-Top-Gun to _you_ Little-Miss… Miss, err… oh, dammit…" He curses with Pigeon giggled loudly in response, "I always hate it when that happens!"

"Comebacks weren't your best strong-points, weren't they?" Pigeon chuckled in amusement.

Raikes narrowed his eyes at his non-related sister in an intimidating manner, "Pfft! Whatever…" He huffed. He then raised an eyebrow in thought, "Ya'know, despite being asleep for a hundred years I should _really_ be hittin' the sack. Ya'know? For when the boss requires our skills & whatnot..." He says casually as he stretches his arms upwards.

"What?! You're _still_ tired after a century-long nap session?!" Pigeon's eyes went wide in mock-surprise, "What've you been drugged up on?"

"The same thing everybody on this damn ship's been breathing in…" Raikes said flatly.

"Yeah, yeah I know buddy." Pigeon finished, then a reminder popped into her head, this time, not as good as they hoped for, "I hate to say this but I have this really bad feeling that Queen's gonna whip our tails when she finds out about our records…" She murmured loud enough for her brother to hear.

Queen was, as they had nicknamed, the Matriarch of Science, although truth is she is the Science Department's head manager in both the lab & out in the field. She has had a grudge against using weapons in diplomacy for a very long time, so rather than choose a military-based career she chose to be a field scientist; getting up close & personal other than wade around inside a laboratory for several years. She is much older than either Pigeon or Raikes, being nearly twenty years older than the two & having much more experience about what might lay out on the approaching world below them.

It wasn't long until they reached their living quarters when the loudspeakers rang out again, this time for both siblings to head to the Science Department.

"**Attention, attention; To Captains Raikes & Pigeon, the manager of the Science Department requires your presence, report to the Science Department on the double!**"

Raikes frowned in annoyance, "Great, barely a few metres from our living quarters & already we have to _report_ for _duty_!"

"Relax tough guy, it may just be nothing, or it could be something too interesting to pass up." Pigeon mentions, & floats off toward the very front of the giant dreadnought; just behind the Dome Shield - exactly where the Science labs were located - not only that but Pigeon was already far ahead & now hidden deep within the big crowds of their own kind.

"Ohh, why me?!" He moaned, "Can't I just have at least twelve hours' sleep or more?!" He muttered as he flew down the corridors behind his sister.

Whatever Queen wanted with both pilots, then it must be very, _very_ important to include _both_ of them in, especially of it is a deployment down to the planet surface.

Pigeon narrowed her eyes in suspicion as she effortlessly floated through the hallways & corridors of the great starship, "(_If those lab-rats want both of us up in the Science Department, then that means that something really big is brewing up, & I don't like it…_)"

* * *

_**To be continued in: **__Chapter II; First Contact,_


End file.
